Gotham City has undergone a radical transformation since the trilogy began in 2005. Once a cesspool of crime and corruption on an equal footing with Detroit, it has cured been of the plague of organized crime thanks to the Dent Act.

Yet behind the glamor and smiles, we are introduced to our heroes who have in their own ways hit rock bottom. Commissioner Gordon’s (Gary Oldman) personal life has fallen apart and Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) has gone into social exile as each one is battling their demons. Like all stories with a protagonist degraded by guilt; he must overcome a great challenge and make the ultimate sacrifice to achieve redemption.

Enter Bane (Tom Hardy); a former member of the League of Shadows turned mercenary who is devoted to finishing the work of the late Ra’s al Ghul (Liam Neeson) by destroying Gotham. From the moment we are introduced to him, you know he is going to present one of the biggest challenges Batman has ever faced. Bane is both cleaver and ruthless while Batman has grown weak after eight years in exile. With everything that matters on the line, the Dark Knight will have to overcome the ultimate personification of evil if he is save the city he has called home his entire life.

And that’s how you end a trilogy!

It has been a long wait for comic book fans and cinephilia but Christopher Nolan concludes his masterpiece with The Dark Knight Rises. This is truly one of the best movies of the summer and the perfect ending to a trilogy. Like its predecessors; Nolan has crafted a gritty adaptation of the Batman-mythos by abandoning the comic book imagery in favor of a modernism setting. Again you have a movie that is rich in content while layered in thought provoking metaphors. All of this is driven by the amazing musical score composed by Hans Zimmer.

The standing ovation the film has received across the nation may imply this is a “great film”, however it has flaws that degrade it into a “good film”. The Dark Knight was one of the best comic adaptations but unfortunately Nolan failed to live up to those standards with The Dark Knight Rises. Instead you have a superhero movie that is just good but not great. Most of it has to do with moments of the film that are ridiculous that leave the audience screaming “why didn’t you [insert idea here]”.

Specifically moments like when Bane trapping most of the GCPD underground or the final battle were the army of cops and criminals clash in a medieval fashion. There also moments when the transparency from one scene to another is so choppy that it’s an embarrassment for Nolan and eye sore for the audience. Thankfully, this only happens early on in the film.

Despite its minor flaws; The Dark Knight Rises is definitely not on par with Spider Man 3 or The Godfather Pt. III. This is a movie one has to see unless you’re planning to be a social outcast for a week.

The Dark Knight Rises ends with our hero redeeming himself and finally becoming the symbol Gotham needs. Nolan ends the trilogy in a manner to ensure that no potential Joel Schumacher could poison his masterpiece with a camp screenplay or a Batsuit with nipples.

Final Score: 8/10

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